Come meet John in Shuttle Bay 1!

John will also host a panel presentation on Saturday at 2:55pm in the Enterprise Auditorium.

John Ratzenberger is best known for playing mail carrier Cliff Calvin on one of the most popular sitcoms of all time “Cheers”. He had read for the part of Norm Peterson, but after the audition, he could tell they weren’t going to give him the part. Sensing an opportunity, he asked if they had written a “bar know-it-all”, which the producers decided was a great idea. Cliff became known for his outlandish stories of plausible half-truths, irrelevant trivia, and ignorant misinformation, and was known for being an overall pretentious blowhard.

Star Wars fans world wide know John for his role as Major Derlin as seen in “Star Wars The Empire Strikes Back” and those same fans will recognize him from another huge franchise; “Superman 1 & 2”! Horror fans remember him from “House II” and “Motel Hell”, films which are on the opposite side of the spectrum when it comes to what kids know him for today!

John’s popularity has crossed over from the sitcom, Sci-Fi and fantasy worlds into another huge demographic, being recognized by kids off all ages for his various roles in the Disney/Pixar animated films! John holds the record as the only actor to voice a character in 23 Pixar films. His voice being heard as various characters was a running “gag” that he and director John Lasseter decided on together. John never tells fans which character he voices, he wants them to be surprised and figure it out for themselves when they see the film. His Pixar films include all the “CARS” films, “Coco”, “The Incredibles 1& 2” and reprised his character role as Hamm in all four “ Toy Story ” films! His favorite voice is PT Flea from “ Bug’s Life ”.

Come meet Misty in Shuttle Bay 1!

Misty will also host a panel presentation on Sunday at 11:05am in the Enterprise Auditorium.

Misty Rosas is thrilled to be a rising star in the Star Wars Universe. Misty’s many characters in the DISNEY+ award winning hit series, “The Mandalorian”, include the heroic Kuiil, two different Ugnaughts, Saifir and Pirate Coxswain, a Snivvian Bartender and the fan favorite, Frog Lady, a beloved Mom from a galaxy far, far away who taught Mando & Grogu to express love! These roles have introduced fans of this multi-talented and multi-layered woman, to more of the expanding universe of Rosas.

Early in her career she was also a much sought after stunt performer for such iconic films as “The Hunger Games: Catching Fire”, “Zathura: A Space Adventure”, “Van Helsing”, “Rescue 911”, “Jingle All the Way”, “Casper and Wendy”, “Three Kings” and many more. Misty is excited to look forward to her next fantastical adventure.

Come meet Dave in the Cosplay Ground where you can take photos with him and Yoda!

Dave will also host a panel presentation on Sunday at 12:55pm in the Enterprise Auditorium.

A second generation puppeteer, David Barclay was hired by Lucasfilm and Stuart Freeborn to work on “The Empire Strikes Back” as part of the Yoda build crew. While on set, one of the assistants to Frank Oz, the chief puppeteer for Yoda, became ill and David was selected to replace her. In doing so, he started a career as one of the most sought after puppeteers in both Hollywood and England. Not only did David get to assist Frank Oz on Yoda, but he also received the opportunity to fully operate the Yoda puppet for a week when Frank was forced to return to his work on “Sesame Street” and Frank nominated David to take over as chief puppeteer. His many accomplishments on “The Empire Strikes Back” were not forgotten as he was chosen to be chief puppeteer for the most disgusting creature in the “Star Wars” universe, the galactic gangster Jabba the Hutt in “Return of the Jedi”. David’s work in these two memorable films lead to a further collaboration with Frank Oz in “Labyrinth”, “The Dark Crystal”, and “Little Shop of Horrors”. His growing resume enabled David to garner a coveted position as chief puppeteer for the Amblin film “Who Framed Roger Rabbit”. He became Academy Award Finalist for his work on “Cats and Dogs” and has worked on dozens of films including “Muppet Christmas Carol”, “Lost in Space”, “The Flintstones: Viva Rock Vegas”, “Snow Dogs”, “Stuart Little 2”, “Team America”, “Looney Tunes Back in Action”, “Cats and Dogs 2”, “The Muppets”, “Muppets Most Wanted” and “Where The Wild Things Are”.

Come see Dr. Lindgren at his panel presentation at 10:15am on Saturday in the Enterprise Auditorium!

Dr. Kjell Lindgren is a physician and NASA astronaut serving as the Deputy Director of the Flight Operations Directorate at Johnson Space Center, where he leads the execution of NASA’s human spaceflight mission. He serves a workforce of 2,400 engineers, flight controllers, instructors, aviators, flight directors, and astronauts.

Born in Taipei, Taiwan into Air Force family, Dr. Lindgren spent most of his childhood in the United Kingdom and returned to the U.S. to complete his education with an undergraduate degree from the US Air Force Academy and a Doctorate of Medicine from the University of Colorado. He is residency trained in both in emergency and aerospace medicine. He joined NASA as a flight surgeon in 2007 and served as the Deputy Crew Surgeon for STS-130 and Expedition 24. He was selected as an astronaut in June 2009 as a member of “the Chumps,” the 20th NASA astronaut class.  Dr. Lindgren is a veteran of 2 long duration space station missions with a cumulative 311 days in space. He has performed two spacewalks and has conducted over 300 different scientific experiments in low earth orbit. Dr. Lindgren has flown both Russian Soyuz and SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft. He commanded the inaugural flight of the Crew Dragon Freedom as a part of NASA’s Crew-4 mission in 2022.

Inspired by the orbital perspective, Kjell pursues opportunities to be a better steward of humanity’s spaceship, Earth. As an assistant scoutmaster for his sons’ scout troop, he teaches outdoor ethics and conservation. He is a Leave No Trace trainer, a nature center volunteer, and a Texas Master Naturalist.

Kjell is an accomplished public speaker, sharing inspiring messages of resilience, teamwork, faith, and stewardship with audiences spanning entertainment, industry, and academia. He is also an “out of this world” performer, as the first (and last) astronaut to play the Great Highland Bagpipes in space.

Kjell enjoys being in the mountains, making gear, reading science fiction and spending time with his wife, Kristi and their 3 kids.

Carolyn Collins Petersen is an award-winning science writer with six books, 40 documentary scripts, and countless magazine articles to her credit. As a science outreach content producer and consultant, she works with various institutions as a science writer and technical editor for astronomy, astrophysics, and space science-related outreach projects. Her most notable recent projects include a script for a Mars documentary (in production), a series of scripts and voice-overs for “SpaceweatherFX”, an MIT Haystack Observatory vodcast project, and exhibit writing for the Griffith Observatory exhibition program that opened in November, 2006, as well as the California Academy of Science’s “California’s Altered States” climate change exhibit that opened September 2008. Her current clients include Gemini Observatory, Subaru Observatory, and Software Bisque. On the web, Carolyn maintains TheSpacewriter.com, is a segment producer for AstroCast.TV and has been contributing to 365 Days of Astronomy podcasts throughout 2009.

Carolyn is vice-president of Colorado-based Loch Ness Productions, an innovative company specializing in creating cosmic content for astronomy and space-science related projects. The company’s clients include more than 800 planetarium and science center facilities, plus private enterprises in software and publishing.

Come see Melody at her panel presentation at 1:50pm on Sunday, in the Enterprise Auditorium!

Rising through the ranks of the USDA Forest Service as history’s

First Black Female Forester

Melody Starya Mobley’s story is an remarkable example of systemic success.

Melody suffered years of abuse, oppression, and tokenism that catapulted her into a lifetime of sharing her survivors story. Melody served our public lands, followed by a decade of recovery,

Melody emerged from the ashes of trauma to share her testament. Her mission is to create positive change for groups that have been historically excluded from natural spaces.

Meet Shi En at her panel presentation on Sunday at 9:15am in the Enterprise Auditorium!

Shi En Kim is a Malaysian-born independent science journalist who is currently based in Washington, DC. Her work has appeared in National Geographic, Scientific American, The Atlantic, Popular Science, and other outlets. She was a 2022 early-career fellow at The Open Notebook and a 2021 AAAS Mass Media Fellow at Smithsonian Magazine. In 2022, she graduated with a PhD in molecular engineering from the University of Chicago.

With an education in the physical sciences, beat-reporting experience in the health sciences, and lived experience in the lush tropics of Southeast Asia famous for its one-of-a-kind biodiversity, Kim is broadly interested in narratives that sit at the intersection of various issues and that can illuminate the interconnectedness of different communities in a world so inequitable. She hopes to explore humankind’s complex relationships with nature, the artificial world, and each other through the rigor of science and power of story.

Come see Dr. Wong at his panel on Saturday at 9:15am in the Enterprise Auditorium!

Dr. Michael Wong is an astrobiologist and planetary scientist whose primary scientific interests are planetary atmospheres, habitability, biosignatures, and the emergence of life. He is co-authoring a revised edition of the textbook Astrobiology: A Multidisciplinary Approach. He also hosts a podcast that examines science, technology, and culture through the lens of Star Trek.

He is working with Staff Scientist Bob Hazen to assess the network topologies of exoplanet atmospheres for potential biosignatures.

Come see Rachel at her panel presentations! 1:15 Saturday in the Serenity room, and , 3:40 Sunday in the Enterprise Auditorium!

In addition to travel, otters, gems and minerals, motorcycles, sour gummy candy, dirty jokes, and neon colors bright enough to make your eyes water, Rachel also loves reading and writing modern romantasy books featuring powerful-yet-flawed heroines, unforgettable magic systems, and smoldering romance.

When she’s not hunched over her computer writing (while her cockatoo sits on her shoulder begging for head scratches), you can find her hiking, voice acting as Tana the tiefling on the thrilling DnD podcast, Of Dice and Friends, or hanging out at Rachel’s Renergades, the greatest group on the internet, where she chills with readers and generally stirs up trouble.

Rafael Maldonado Bad Hand is the artist, writer and creator of the independent comic, “Pilla”, the story of a young girl searching for her father in a post-apocalyptic world where humans are on the bottom of the food chain. In 2021 he was the recipient of the Imagine 2020 arts award, presented at the proclamation reading of Indigenous Peoples Day for the city of Denver. Rafael has taken on a new independent endeavor with like minded Indigenous comic creators under the name of Rezilient Press and Bad/Song Studios and will be releasing his new book with Richard Crowsong next year. He will not only have his books for sale but will also accepting commissions and Sketch Cover requests.

R. Alan Brooks wrote his 1st graphic novel in 2017. Now, he teaches graphic novel writing for MFA programs like Regis University & Wilkes University, as well as at Lighthouse Writers Workshop, and more.

He wrote and executive produced the award-winning short-film, “Always, Most of The Time“, and he’s the author of “The Burning Metronome” and “Anguish Garden” – graphic novels featuring insightful social commentary.

His award-winning weekly comic for The Colorado Sun, “What’d I Miss?”, has also been praised for its direct engagement with social issues.

His TED Talk, on the importance of art, reached 1 million views in 2 months. His graphic novel work is featured in the Denver Art Museum, and has been featured in the Museum of Contemporary Art – Denver, as well as the Amon Carter Museum in Texas.

He hosted the Museum of Contemporary Art – Denver’s podcast – “How Art Is Born”, as well as his own “Mother F**ker In A Cape” comics podcast, and has written comic books for Image Comics, Archie Comics, Sumerian Comics, Zenescope Entertainment, Pop Culture Classroom, and more.